Capiumhttps://www.capium.com
Empowering businesses and accountantsMon, 06 Nov 2017 12:00:59 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.2Robotics and Accountancy – What’s the Future?https://www.capium.com/blog/robotics-accountancy-whats-future/
https://www.capium.com/blog/robotics-accountancy-whats-future/#commentsMon, 06 Nov 2017 12:00:59 +0000https://www.capium.com/?p=1686Artificial intelligence and robotic automation processes are one of the most widely speculated topics for quite some time now. This calls for the following questions:

Is the future of today’s accountants bleak or bright?

Is the profession of accounting on a collision course with these technologies?

While we are still far from the world where the intuitive and complex role of accounting professionals will be taken away by mechanical robots, some software robots are, however, capable of giving accountants a run for their money. These robotic software do not sit in front of the desk like a normal robot would, but efficiently behind the scenes and ease the burden of the accounting tasks. They offer help with data collection and reconciliations, compliance testing, journal entries, master data management and much more. Once they are taught how to do things, they will continue doing them reliably and accurately until you tell them to stop. They will not care about skipping lunch breaks, nor would they mind working 24/7. And the best part, they will not quit. Thus, you can be free of the worry of losing an exceptional accountant.

An Inevitable Trend

Robots can very well manage and access multiple systems all at once while also make complex calculations and manage data as long as they are provided with digital data. There are a number of excellent finance, accounting and ERP software that have been in the industry for quite some time now. These have helped hundreds of organizations in streamlining not only their finance and accounting, but also a number of other business processes. However, the number of accounting staff is still very large in businesses and corporations.

How should organizations take advantage of this trend of automation to the full rather than being thrashed by it? Automation is inevitable in accounting and its processes. Thus, it is important for businesses and organizations to have a plan for it.

How to Plan for Accounting Automation?

As mentioned above, automation is inevitable in all business processes and that includes accounting as well. You should use the early days of the business to get to a comfort level with the automation, and then introduce it to the organization in an encouraging way. Then, move to adoption, slowly and steadily. Keep your accounting professionals in line with the developments that are taking place in the organization and include them in the process to make them aware that these developments are made not to rig them of their positions but to help them in their daily tasks, which should be your actual aim.

The Future – Is it Bright or Bleak?

Coming to the question of whether the future of the accounting professionals is bright or bleak, one has to take into consideration a number of factors. The most important one is, while robots may take the place of accountants in the future, they still need humans to train them. Humans will be still needed for advice and help, which serves as a ray of hope for the humans in the accounting profession. And, this is the case not just in accounting, but all other professions out there as well. On the split side, organizations should welcome automation as this is the need to be successful in the business world of today’s digital age.

]]>https://www.capium.com/blog/robotics-accountancy-whats-future/feed/0Accounting for Bitcoin – What You Should Knowhttps://www.capium.com/blog/accounting-bitcoin/
https://www.capium.com/blog/accounting-bitcoin/#commentsTue, 31 Oct 2017 13:36:25 +0000https://www.capium.com/?p=1684Bitcoin was all everyone could talk about a few years back. It was the cryptocurrency that was threatening to take over the world by storm. However, the buzz has recently subsided. There is much less talk about bitcoin these days, but if you think it has gone away, you are wrong. It is actually quite the opposite. According to recent reports, there are more than 100,000 retailers that accept bitcoin all over the world. It is has moved past the point where it was considered the currency of the arms traffickers and drug dealers to coming into the mainstream and becoming the currency of choice for the tech savvy millennials of today.

Accounting for Bitcoins

Now that more people know about bitcoins and are actually using them, we have started hearing more questions about how should businesses account for the transactions denominated in bitcoins or for the holdings of bitcoins. As one would expect, there is no guidance of when it comes to using cryptocurrencies such as bitcoins on an official level. Thus, any person or organization using bitcoins will have to go back to the first principles and play the hit and trial method to find out what is appropriate. While the following are some personal thoughts rather than a definitive guide, they can prove to be useful when one is making a guideline for accounting of transactions involving bitcoins.

Bitcoins are taken and regarded by people as a cash equivalent or a form of cash. Accounting for bitcoins will become pretty straightforward. However, this doesn’t seem quite right as you can convert bitcoins to any form of currency at any given point of time, but they are not cash themselves. They can also not be treated as cash equivalents owing to almost no risk of having a change in their values. They might attain the status of being cash equivalents some point later in time, but we haven’t quite reached there yet.

What is the Possible Solution?

If they are neither cash nor cash equivalents, can they be treated as financial assets then? No, they don’t meet their definition either. They are more like gold or other commodities, in which case they can be treated as an intangible asset or an inventory based on the business that holds them. If we treat them as a commodity, they would need to be measured at the value of services or goods at the time of transaction, which in most cases would be measured at a cost minus any impairment. If the entity, however, is a bitcoin trader, it would be better to measure the bitcoin at a fair value using the ideal of profit and loss.

Final Thoughts

As mentioned above, these are nothing more than tentative thoughts. The accounting practices will evolve over time and one day, we might have a proper accounting standard and system dedicated to bitcoins. Since these cryptocurrencies and their use is becoming increasingly common, we need to develop accounting practices to record the transactions soon to ensure we have the right system which can be accounted for legally and professionally. It is no longer a currency used only by criminals and the drug mafia. It is becoming increasingly mainstream and thus needs to be taken seriously by the accounting authorities.

]]>https://www.capium.com/blog/accounting-bitcoin/feed/0Follow these Steps to Safeguard Your Accounting Business from the Threat of Cyber Attackshttps://www.capium.com/blog/follow-steps-safeguard-accounting-business-threat-cyber-attacks/
https://www.capium.com/blog/follow-steps-safeguard-accounting-business-threat-cyber-attacks/#commentsWed, 18 Oct 2017 19:13:54 +0000https://www.capium.com/?p=1672The world has not witnessed the kinds of cyber attacks it is witnessing now. Back in May this year, there was a ransom-ware attack on cyber security that infected more than 300,000 computers all over the world. The threat and consequences of these attacks increase manifold when you are running an accounting or a financial firm. You are essentially dealing with numbers that cannot be lost and this is what the attackers target, leading to huge losses for the company and its clients. Experts constantly warn of the ever evolving and ever constantly present threat of cyber-crimes. It is therefore, necessary that you make sure you take preventive measures for your accounting and financial firm to keep it safe from these threats. Here is the checklist to follow to prevent your financial or accounting firm from potentially catastrophic cyber-attacks and data breaches.

1. Information Risk Management

It is important to assess the risk posed to the information assets of your organisation the same way and with the same rigour that you would do for your operational, regulatory and legal risks. You also need to make sure all the contractors, employees and anybody in the organisation is well aware of the risk posed to your accounting and financial firm in case there is a cyber-attack leading to data breaches.

2. Secure Configuration

To keep your firm protected from the threat of cyber-attacks, you need to make sure you disable and remove all the unnecessary functionality from the department of IT in your organisation. Keep your systems prepared and patched against any known vulnerabilities.

3. Network Attacks

Your organisation can be exposed to the cyber-attacks and risks in case any person or system in the organisation connects to an untrusted network. It is important that all the traffic is filtered at the network perimeter and only that is allowed which is required to support and run your business. Also monitor the traffic for any malicious outgoing or incoming activity that indicate vulnerability and the threat of an attack.

4. Control Privilege Accounts

It is important that the user access to the IT systems is limited and only shared with the concerned people. Also, give the IT personnel only the information they need to get their job done. Keep a check and control on privileged accounts such as database and system administrators. Make sure that this account is not used for any high-risk activities. Monitor the action of these privileged accounts and make sure they are not used for any task they are not intended to be used for.

5. Malware Protection

If it important to address the security policies of the company for all the business processes that are vulnerable to malware. These include web browsing, email, personally owned devices and removable media. Run scans for malware regularly and use an anti-virus to protect all your client and host machines. Also, make sure to scan all the information that is supplied to or from your organisation for malware.

Remember, cyber-attacks are real and can cost you a lot in terms of lost information and money. With the help of the above-mentioned practices and tips, you can ward off the risk of cyber-attacks on your accounting or financial firm.

]]>https://www.capium.com/blog/follow-steps-safeguard-accounting-business-threat-cyber-attacks/feed/0Features to Look for when Choosing a Tax Softwarehttps://www.capium.com/blog/features-choosing-tax-software/
https://www.capium.com/blog/features-choosing-tax-software/#commentsMon, 18 Sep 2017 11:58:28 +0000https://www.capium.com/?p=1584Choosing the right tax software for your business is a daunting task. There are so many things to look for that finding the right one without an expert by your side becomes difficult. If you are also in the search of a good tax software for your business, big or small, you need to take special care when looking for some specific features. Without these features, your investment in the tax software will not be as fruitful as you had expected.

Here are the features you should look for when choosing tax software for your business.

1. User Friendliness

First things first, you need to have a tax software that is user-friendly. However, you cannot be sure of a program being user friendly just because it’s written on the box. You need to dwell in a bit further. When you go to the store to buy the software, ask the associate for recommendations. They will recommend you some of the best ones when it comes to user friendliness and other features and then you can choose the one that you think is the best for your business. Another good thing to do is to read online reviews about different software before actually purchasing one. They are a great way to know how much of the customers of the software are happy with its performance.

2. File Backup

When choosing a tax software for your business, selecting the one that offers file backup is the best choice. Maintaining a backup of your files is necessary to protect your business from frauds, audits and lawsuits of different kinds. If you can find a tax software that offers automatic backup of your files, there is nothing better than this. Also, just maintaining a backup in your office is not enough. You need to have an online backup so that it can come in handy in case you need it any time.

3. Online Support

It is important to choose a tax software that offers online support. While you may not need to talk to an accountant, you still might need help and support with the working of the software or to deal with issues that may arise in the software. Therefore, it is better to seek a tax software that offers support. Also look for the one that has an online chat features as it is the fastest way to get help in case you are stuck with the software at any point and time.

4. Form Preparation

Another feature to look for when choosing a tax software is that it should be capable enough of printing out the HMRC forms directly once you have answered all the questions present in the software. Do not choose a tax software that just instructs you on how to fill these forms as the actual need of the software gets eliminated there when you have to do it all on your own. Choose a software that gives you complete filled forms that are ready to be printed or to submitted online, in case you use this option.

These were some of the features that need to be taken into account when choosing a tax software for your business. With a tax software, you will be able to handle taxes in a much better way than before.

]]>https://www.capium.com/blog/features-choosing-tax-software/feed/0Myths About Accounting Firms Preferences of Millennial Business Ownershttps://www.capium.com/blog/myths-accounting-firms-preferences-millennial-business-owners/
https://www.capium.com/blog/myths-accounting-firms-preferences-millennial-business-owners/#commentsFri, 15 Sep 2017 12:44:39 +0000https://www.capium.com/?p=1580Millennials are the next generation of decision makers and business owners. They are the representatives of the innovative, tech-savvy and determined generation and are in the process of launching companies or getting their feet in the hierarchy of other businesses. They are now often holding some key decision making positions and also hold the reins in most cases when deciding which accounting firm to choose or shed.

More than a thousand millennial business owners were surveyed in the 2017 Millennial Business Owner Accounting Firm Survey. The goal was to determine the ideal that the millennials have when they are choosing an accounting firm. With the results of the data acquired from the survey, here are some common myths that need to be debunked about the millennials and their accounting firm preferences.

1. Millennials do not generate good business revenue to seen as fit to be accounting clients

Most of the oldest millennials today are in their 30s and 40s. Business owners at this age are capable of generating a good amount of business and revenue. They can also act as substantive business leaders at this age. As per the poll, almost one-third of the millennial business owners are leading companies that generate a revenue of $1.1 million to as much as $25 million a year. Among these business owners, about 16% are leading companies that are generating revenues in the range of $501,000 to $1 million each year.

This highlights that providing accounting services to millennials has two advantages: there are millennial led business that can afford and need accounting services, and the revenues they generate show a potential of a long term relationship between these millennial business owners and accounting firms.

2. Tax Services is all they need

While the number one service that the millennial business owners get help for is taxation, however, it is not right to say that they only need taxation services. In fact, they look for different services than the previous generations of business owners.

Millennials consume about 54% of bookkeeping services. As many as 24% of these millennial business owners include accounting technology training and recommendation in their service. About 20% of them said they need help from accounting firms for their invoicing needs.

The top accounting frustrations for millennial business owners, as per the survey, were managing cash flow, forecasting and signaling and reporting a need for a strategic input extending beyond the basic technical terminology and reporting. Thus, as accounting firms, it is time to move beyond just offering and marketing tax services. There is a lot of scope when it comes to accounting practices and services needed by millennial business owners and it is time to start focusing on them.

It is important to accommodate millennials when you are deciding the course of action for your accounting firm. Millennials are working and opening businesses in all sectors and industries. They make up a major part of the entrepreneurs and workforce today. Therefore, it is important to take their preferences into account and to offer them specialized services that they need and want. The accounting firms that anticipate and create practices that suit to the needs of the millennial business owners are in a winning situation as they can grab a competitive edge over other accounting firms and have profitable and long-term relationships with the millennial business owners.